The Two-Way Street
by Tragic Mercury
Summary: Leo had been working hard to make a new, comfortable life for himself in Pelican town. He had somehow made an alcoholic friend, found a father figure that constantly smelled of fish and was genuinly liked by the community. Or so he thought, until one night when he ran into the resident jock. Warning: BoyxBoy romance
1. Chapter 1

"Why are you bothering me? Leave me alone." the cross-eyed glare was made even worse by the foul stench of alcohol on the drunkard's breath.

"Aw man, it's times like these that I really wish I could, but you know your aunt would have both our heads if I didn't bring you home safe."

Shane tried to protest some more but really only managed to murmur a half chewed out sentence before he let Leo put his hand around his shoulder and heaved him up. They began to stumble out the bar, Leo only just catching the grateful nod from Gus and returning the gesture before they made it out into cold winter air.

This was Leo's first winter in the valley, and just like all the other seasons, it was a beautiful sight to behold. The snow glittered in the moonlight like small gems and the river banks had frozen into thick ice. He loved the sight of the naked trees full of snow, the way his breath turned into steam when he breathed out and those cold winter mornings when nothing in the world was more comfortable than his bed. He really had made the right decision by moving here, despite the protests of his eccentric mother.

The breathtaking winter scene was, however, slightly less magical with this heavy load of human on his side.

"Come on Shane, try to walk on your own a little bit, you're too heavy for me to carry on my own."

His drunk friend groaned and raised his head up from Leo's shoulder where he had rested it a few moments before and, thankfully, managed to put the ground under his feet. It didn't help a whole lot but it was something.

This was a somewhat frequent occurrence these days, aunt Marnie (she insisted he call her aunty), appeared on his doorsteps when it was nearing midnight, asking him if Shane was with him, Leo saying no, Marnie looking mad and worried and before he knew it he was dragging her nephew's ass back home from the bar.

He didn't even know how they became friends to begin with. The other man had been rude as hell when he first arrived at the valley-actully the attitude hadn't changed a whole lot- but Leo had made a point to stay away. As time passed, however, they kept bumping into each other, at the bar or at community gatherings… they were both loners at nature and somehow after a few months, they had actually gotten to know each other quite well.

Shane could rant as much as he liked and Leo would listen without judgement. After all, he had been where Shane was now, and had a much better understanding of this dark cloud in his conscience than most everybody else in the valley. They just didn't seem to get it. And Shane in return often gave Leo advice about farming, mostly concerning the animals. It was a give-and-take kind of relationship and seemed to be working pretty well for them so far.

"Almost there, man, please stay conscious for five more minutes" Leo huffed out, barely hearing the mumble of a reply coming from the bag of bones beside him.

A movement ahead suddenly caught Leo's eye and he peered out into the darkness. He could barely see five feet ahead of him thanks to the illuminated ring he carried on his left index finger, and although it wasn't a lot he had often times found himself thankful for at least that much light. The shadow came closer at an alarming speed and the closer it got the more clearly he could hear a sound that followed. It was some kind of a rasping sound…

Swallowing, Leo carefully reached for the hilt of the short-sword on his back. Would a monster dare come this close to the village? It would be the first time, as far as he knew, and would certainly be a cause for concern if that was the case. But why now? Why…

Before he could finish that thought, the shadow emerged into the small ray of light, a tall figure, huffing menacingly, wearing a… green hoodie?

"Watch out!"

Leo just barely managed to step out of the way before Alex collided with them like a bowling ball. He misstepped, however, and lost his grip on Shane before falling on his ass. Immediately the freezing cold stung his buttocks as it seeped into his jeans.

The jock, most likely out on a late night run, seemed shocked at first but then his expression changed into one resembling disgust.

"Useless drunks." he muttered before putting his hood over his head and continued on his way.

Leo was speechless for a while. He had never really talked to Alex before, aside from the usual greeting pleasantries which were common courtesy in small communities like these. But he had never done or said anything that should have awarded this kind of hostility.

"What a prick." he breathed out, still somewhat distracted. The lack of response, however, brought him out of his daze and he glanced at Shane who seemed to have fallen asleep.

"Great."

Cursing under his breath, Leo somehow managed to pull Shane onto his back and continued on his way to aunt Marnie's barn. Just five more minutes…

Fifteen minutes later, Leo knocked on the front door to Marnie's barn, huffing and sweating despite the cold. The door was opened within seconds and a worried Marnie stood in the doorway, wearing a white nightgown and a pink nightcap. She looked worried sick, but as soon as she saw them, relief flooded over her face, along with some much needed color. Poor woman. He needed to talk to Shane about how his behaviour was affecting his family.

Walking towards Shane's room, Leo found the familiar smell of baked bread wafting through the house. He eyed the kitchen and saw the dinner table filled with loaves of bread. He cast a side look at Marnie who instantly seemed embarrassed, huffing under her breath "I needed to do something to keep me awake."

He smirked at her response but again made a note to have that chat with his friend. As he entered Shane's room, he made a straight line to his bed, almost throwing the man in it.

A groan escaped Shane's lips before he opened one eye groggily.

"Oh, so now you're awake."

Shane seemed to find this amusing, answering with a half grin, and then saying: "You wanna join me?"

Leo almost got a whiplash he turned around so quickly. He nearly sagged down to the floor when he noticed that Marnie was gone, hopefully to sleep. He then turned back to his friend who only seemed entertained by his panic.

He had accidentally blurted out to Shane one night last fall that he was gay. He had meant to keep it secret, not wanting unnecessary drama in the valley and had, of course, immediately regretted saying it. To his amazement, however, Shane only seemed slightly surprised but otherwise didn't seem all that bothered. He had promised to keep it secret, but couldn't resist teasing Leo every now and then when the mood struck him.

Leo huffed, still trying to tame his beating heart, "Sorry but you're not my type."

A shadow fell over Shane's face as he replied, "'cause I'm a useless drunk?"

So he had heard that, huh? Leo felt a small stab in his chest, knowing how self-conscious Shane really was.

"No," he said, digging his hands into the pockets of his large, light grey coat,

"It's your nose, man. It's huge."

Shane burst into giggles at that, and Leo sighed a breath of relief. The giggles soon turned into amused sighs before all that could be heard was the deep sigh of someone fast asleep.

"'night, dude." he muttered before turning for the door, carefully closing it behind him.

Aunt Marnie was still in the kitchen when Leo emerged from Shane's room, cradling a bundle of cloth, "Thank you, dear" she said before handing the bundle to Leo.

It was two loaves of bread, still warm.

"Don't worry about it Marn, it may be hard to believe but he actually does make up for these incidents. I think it's that pride thing of his."

Marnie smiled at that, "He's lucky to have such a good friend as you." She then frowned slightly, "and that's 'aunty' to you."

Feeling awkward, Leo lifted the bundle of bread with a smile and a nod, before heading back to the front door. Bidding goodnight to the other farmer, Leo stepped out into the cold winter air and took in a deep breath. A glance at his watch told him he might catch four hours of sleep if he made it home without any further incidents.


	2. Chapter 2

"Leo, my boy, how's the fish catching today?" Leo looked up to see the old fisherman strolling lazily towards him, bucket in one hand and his fishing pole in the other. The younger of the two smiled.

"It's catching, all right, though they seem to be less interested than they were this morning."

Willy grunted as he put his bucket down between them before looking sagely out at the forest river.

"Wind's been picking up?" he finally asked, without taking his eyes off the waters.

Leo mulled it over for a while before saying "Yeah, actually now that I think about it, it has."

The older man nodded at that "And you've been using the same tackle all day?"

At that, Leo smiled sheepishly, finally seeing where the old fisherman was going with this.

Rearranging the pipe in his mouth, Willy flashed a boyish grin and squatted down to rummage in his bucket before pulling up a tackle that looked like an oversized wine cork.

"This one should do it" he said, handing the tackle to Leo who took it gratefully, reeling in his snare and began to swap his old, worn tackle with the new one.

Willy had been one of the first people he had met in Pelican Town and they had hit it off right from the start. Leo's late father had taught him fishing when he was very young and he had been ecstatic to receive Willy's old fishing pole, eager to recall his forgotten fishing skills.

The old fisherman reminded Leo a lot of his father and he liked to believe the older's affection reflected his own. They didn't talk a whole lot but enjoyed each other's quiet company every now and then- especially on the weekends when Willy closed his shop.

Today was such a day, a quiet Saturday afternoon. The rays of the sun were enough to blind the eyes, yet despite its glare, it was freezing outside. Most of the snow had melted away, as it was nearing the end of the winter season, but there was a cold wind blowing through the valley and it seemed to have gathered its power as the day went by.

Fishing in the winter would have been a near impossible task if it weren't for the green wool gloves his mother had sent him late last fall. She had sworn she had knitted them herself, but he would have found that hard to believe even if he hadn't found the tag inside that read 'made in Zuzu city.' It was the thought that counted however, and he found himself immensely grateful for the gift.

A fish soon tugged at his pole, dragging him back to the present. The fish thrashed and pulled at the snare as Leo carefully turned the spool. Finally, the scaled beast emerged from the water, a crimson-bellied Tiger Trout.

"There's a handsome one! Great job, son!" Willy bellowed, making the younger of the two grin appreciatively as he placed the fish with the rest of the day's catch in his own bucket. Soon they were back to a comfortable silence.

Willy, with his pipe releasing smoke like a small chimney top, caught far more fish than Leo did, though he himself did pretty well and found himself happy with the haul. It should give him enough coins for feed for the animals throughout the whole next week, as well as a beer or two at the saloon.

At the thought of alcohol, Leo's mind turned back to that incident when he and Shane ran into a certain valley jock. Quickly glancing at the fisherman and then back to his bobbing tackle, he cleared his throat and opened his mouth,

"I met Alex the other day." he said conversationally, sounding casual.

"Hm?" said the fisherman distractedly before his eyes seemed to come back into focus. "Did ye now?"

"Yeah, he was out running- it was pretty late, just past midnight I think."

The old fisherman chuckled at that, "he's an amusing one, can't stop thinking about that ball game of his and muscle building and whatnot. When I was young all I ever thought about was how I could win the next fishing competition- there were a lot more of them back then, one for every season!"

"Ah." Replied Leo dumbly before picking up the thread again before the fisherman managed to completely change the subject, "well, anyway, when I met him he was pretty rude. I was helping Shane home, you know," Willy didn't need to reply, everyone in Pelican Town knew about Shane's 'little problem',

"And we bumped into Alex who, completely out of the blue, called us 'useless drunks.'" Willy winced at that, giving Leo the confidence to continue on the subject,

"You know, I kind of expected him to spit on us, they way he looked at us, but then he just turned away and started jogging again. You know what that could have been about? I mean, I've never even had a full conversation with the kid, I'd just like to understand why he'd say something like that to someone he doesn't know."

There was a long while in which the fisherman contemplated this, chewing on his pipe as he did. The wind picked up speed again and in one powerful gust, blew Leo's teal-colored hair out of his face and then blew the strands back into his eyes. He would need to cut it sometime soon, knowing full well his hair would absolutely drive him insane come spring when he began watering his crops once again and he wouldn't be able to see out of his eyes because of his bangs.

"That boy-" Willy finally said, causing Leo to jolt with surprise at the sound of the deep voice,

"- has had a rather troubled life, young as he is. It is not my place to to tell you his story, but I've known his grandparents from the time I was young- those two are ancients, I'm telli' ya," The man winked at Leo, who couldn't supress his smile. "I used to be a friend of Alex's parents, too... Before they moved to the city, that is."

It was as if a shadow befall on the fisherman's face, and suddenly he looked far older than he usually did. Leo averted his gaze to look across the unruly water and continued to listen in silence.

"Leo, I would like to ask you to show the boy a little patience. He could use someone to talk to, poor lad, and he doesn't seem to fit in with the rest of the young'uns in the valley."

Then Willy went quiet once again, seemingly lost in though as he often did. Then, quite suddenly, the fisherman seemed to shake himself out of his stupor, glancing at Leo from the corner of his eye.

"Don't judge a book by its cover," he said wisely, which made Leo frown slightly.

He hadn't judged the book by its color. He'd read the first chapter, found it self-centered, judgemental and rude and had therefore quit reading said book.

He decided not to argue with the fisherman, however, and after a few more minutes of no further catch, he found himself becoming increasingly frustrated, so he reeled in his snare and picked up his bucket.

"Well I'd better get started on dinner. I'll see you later, Willy."

"Take care, lad," was the reply and Leo began to make his way towards his farm, passing Leah's cottage and aunt Marnie's ranch on the way.

The sun was starting to lower its head past the high mountains surrounding the valley. The wind had picked up even more and Leo made a mental note to double check the gates to the barn and the chicken coop once he got home. It looked like there would be another storm that night.


	3. Chapter 3

Leo had gotten used to waking up to the unforgiving alarm clock every morning, though he never seemed to hate the sound any less despite the changing seasons. This time, however, it was not the forsaken screech of the alarm clock that woke him, but a hurried knocking on his door.

At first, he wasn't sure if it was simply a dream and was perfectly content with snuggling further under his covers and ignore the sounds. That might have been possible too, if not for the loud barking of his young Border Collie that followed.

Glancing at his alarm clock, Leo noted that it was only just past 3 A.M.

With a drawn-out groan, he dragged himself out of bed, yelling a "coming!" to the knocker who seemed rather persistent that he woke up. He snatched a white T-shirt from the back of the chair across from his bed and was still in the process of tugging it on when he opened the door, one leg blocking the doorway, so his furry companion wouldn't tackle his late-night guest.

Immediately upon opening the door, he was greeted by the raging, howling wind that slammed into his face, as well as the vision of a pair of foggy glasses. Maru opened her mouth to say something when she looked down at his bare legs and snapped her head back up as fast as lightning, obviously embarrassed.

Leo shared in her embarrassment and fought the urge to explain to her that that was not how he usually answered his door, but thought better on it, stubbornly deciding he could dress however he wanted when it was the middle of the night and any sensible person would be in their beds, sleeping.

Speaking of which…

"Maru, it's the middle of the night, what's going on?"

The thick air of embarrassment seemed to evaporate at that moment as the young inventor opened her eyes wider, as if she had just remembered why she was here.

"Leo, you have to come and help us- there was a rockslide in the mountains and we can't handle it on our own!"

"A rockslide?" Leo scanned Maru over quickly, searching for signs of injury, but thankfully, could find none. "Did someone get hurt? What do you need help with?"

"I don't know- it's horrible, the ridge above Linus' camp just crumbled and his tent is buried under there- we've been trying to call out to him, but there's no answer and the rocks are too heavy for me to help properly so dad told me to go get you since you're closest- "

"Okay, okay, I got it," Leo said, trying his best to calm his own nerves so that Maru wouldn't panic any further. "Take a deep breath, okay? I'll go over there right away." Maru nodded feverishly but seemed to be frozen in place.

"Could you do me a favor, Maru?" the girl looked up at him questioningly. "Could you go over to Harvey's clinic and have him come over? If Linus really is under there we will need immediate medical help. Can you do that?"

Again, she nodded frantically and was just about to run off when Leo called out to her "Maru, wait! Take Watson with you for company, I don't like you running around alone so late at night."

Then he whistled at his Border Collie and pointed at the young inventor and the pup immediately sprung off towards his target, seemingly excited to be let outside. Maru smiled at him gratefully before she turned around again towards the road that lead to town, calling for Watson to follow, which he eagerly did, their shadows swaying on the ground from the lantern that swung to and fro in Maru's grip.

Satisfied that Maru was doing better now that she had a goal and a companion, Leo nearly slammed the door closed and hurriedly found the rest of his clothes, yanking on his pair of dark jeans and throwing on his pale green shirt, not noticing that it was inside out, and didn't bother with socks before he stuffed his feet into his boots. He then grabbed his winter coat and bolted out the door, slamming it once again behind him before he ran up the mountain path.

It took him five minutes to run to Robin's mountain home, overly aware of the walls of the mountain looming over the mountain path as he sprinted. He could make out figures moving in a dim light, right where he remembered Linus' humble home should have been. As he got closer, he recognized the three moving forms as the local geologist, Demetrius; his wife, Robin and her son, Sebastian. They were all scrambling around, throwing, scratching and carrying pieces of rock in varying sizes away from the spot where a yellow tent used to stand.

"I came as soon as I could." Leo managed, panting heavily from his sprint. The family looked in his direction, all sharing a look of apprehension that quickly morphed into ones of deep worry.

"It's good you're here," Demetrius said with a nod in greeting, "we could sure use all the help we can get."

"Where's Maru?" asked Robin, the panic clear in her voice.

"I sent her to fetch Harvey. Watson's with her so she'll be fine." He reassured her, noting the very visible relief pour over the woman's expression before turning his gaze back at Demetrius with creased eyebrows, "have you heard anything?" he gestured at the pieces of mountain covering the ledge as he walked the last few steps towards the family.

"Nothing." the geologist replied grimly. "We're not even sure if he's under there, but if he is…"

He didn't have to complete the sentence, they all knew there was no logical way someone would survive the initial impact, much less the time that they would have spent under the pile. A chill ran down Leo's spine before he steeled himself and consciously wiped his mind of the images that were beginning to surface there.

Shrugging out of his coat, he asked, "Where do you need me?" and with that they all began working at clearing the rubble. Demetrius seemed to be well in charge of which boulders had to be removed in what order, and all in all they worked well together. Sebastian, who was not known as a man of many words, and therefore one of the youngsters Leo hadn't gotten to know very well, was surprisingly strong for his figure. Though he was rather tall, he was skinny but was nevertheless able to lift a few boulders that Leo couldn't help but think probably weighed the same as the young man.

Leo himself was rather average in build. He had been made fun of as a kid in school for being short but he had managed to grow close to average height around the time he got his driver's license. He had never been particularly strongly built either, but the last year working on his farm had made him discover muscles he didn't even know he had, though he was far from being muscular. This did mean, however, that he could help Demetrius lift the largest of the boulders where Sebastian could not.

Time passed strangely that night. Every now and then they would call out for the old hermit, hoping every time they would hear something that would give them hope, but the mountain stayed quiet safe for the heaving wind and the clatter of rocks. Said rocks oftentimes cut into Leo's fingers, yet while he felt slightly aware of the sensation, he didn't feel any pain, his mind far too focused at the task ahead.

It felt like hours passed before Maru finally arrived with doctor Harvey, and Watson, though it probably couldn't have been more than twenty minutes. They were both panting heavily once they made it to the others, Harvey digging out a handkerchief from his pocket and wiping his sweating forehead with it while making out a string of words between breaths,

"Have there… been any... signs?"

The poor man probably didn't make it out to the mountains very often.

"Nothing yet." replied Demetrius, only glancing slightly at the doctor before looking back at Leo, "I think we're safe to move that one now." He said while pointing at a boulder the size of the storage chests Leo had stacked at home.

Not trusting his own voice at the moment, he simply nodded and moved towards the big rock, bending his knees as he tried to gain a firm enough handhold under it and waited for the geologist to mirror his movement.

"My tent!"

Time seemed to freeze as they all, taking their individual time, slowly moved their heads toward the voice that had just cried out. It seemed that even the wind had stopped for a moment in shock as a still silence settled over the mountain ledge. There, staring open-mouthed at the wreckage that used to be his home, stood Linus.

A few seconds passed in absolute stillness before Leo felt his legs tremble from his awkward squatted position and before he could put his hands under him, he collapsed on the ground with a small thud. And with that, the spell was broken.

All hell broke loose. Watson began barking excitedly, as people began to run around, yelling "Linus!" and "oh, thank the heavens" or "where the hell have you been?" the last one, surprisingly seemed to come from Sebastian.

Leo, however, was too tired. With an exhausted smile he took in the faces of the people in front of him, relief flooding his chest in a way that almost hurt. His eyes then seemed to glaze over and he closed them with a big sigh as he rested his arms on his knees, only slightly aware of the heat travelling down his fingertips. It felt nice, though.

Still, the voices rang out and Leo dropped his head tiredly, muttering a "thank God." He hadn't realized how much he cared for the old hermit until he thought he might never see him again. He hadn't realized how much he had enjoyed talking with the man about wild berries or fish or heck, even the weather, but it seemed it had been all he could think about that night.

He could hear Maru actually running up to and hugging Linus once the initial shock had worn out and was now sobbing.

"I really thought that you… that you were…" And then she just cried some more. _'You and me both'_ Leo thought to himself.

A while passed and the voices began to get rather muffled, as if he was underwater. A gentle hand landed on his shoulder, startling him back to the present. Harvey was looking at him with worried eyes.

"Just tired," he drawled out, giving the doctor a small, hopefully reassuring smile.

Harvey nodded and was about to go when he seemed to notice something and gave Leo a horrified look. "Goodness gracious, look at the state of your hands!"

Leo took a curious look at his hands and frowned slightly. They did look rather grotesque, filled with blisters and cuts and covered in shredded skin, blood and dirt. Was that a missing fingernail? No wait, only half- missing.

"I'm sure it looks worse than it is."

He realized how dumb that sounded as soon as the words left his mouth and couldn't help the sheepish grin tugging at his lips as the doctor made a face at him.

Truthfully though, he didn't want to deal with his hands right now. He was exhausted- no, beyond that- if there was a realm beyond exhaustion, but right before death itself, that's where Leo was at that moment.

He was about to tell Harvey that he'd make sure to wash his hands when he got home and swing by his clinic in the morning when the doctor sat down his first-aid kit and squatted down next to him and he knew he wouldn't be getting away that easily as the doctor began to rummage in his medical supplies.

Leo's attention drifted towards the other people in their party. Linus was asking to borrow a sheet from the family so he could make a temporary tent out of it while he uncovered his own from the rubble, to which Robin got so red in the face it reminded Leo of one of the tomatoes he'd grown last summer,

"Don't be ridiculous," she snapped at the man, "you'll be staying with us until we figure out a place fit for a human being to live"

"Nonsense," replied the hermit, steel setting in his eyes, "I refuse to be dependant on anyone, I would rather die."

Leo watched in astonishment as Robin actually raised her fist in a sudden burst of anger and shook it at the old man, "you nearly just did, you-"

Leo hissed in pain and snapped his head back to face the doctor who was now stroking his hands with disinfectant.

"Sorry," said the doctor, though he didn't much look it, as he continued his treatment without any hesitancy. Leo's hands burned as they were cleansed and he gritted his teeth before trying to zone back into the conversation in front of him in an attempt to ignore the pain.

Demetrius had apparently gotten involved in the dispute and had stepped in between his seething wife and the hermit, his deep voice seeming to have a calming effect on everyone around.

"It has been a long night for all of us. We're all tired and little sore. Linus, we were very worried about you and it would ease our minds considerably if you would stay with us at least for a few nights. Won't you do that for us?"

There was a pause in which the old man seemed to be considering this. Harvey had finally finished with the torture and was now in the process of applying band-aids and bandages.

"Great!" exclaimed Demetrius suddenly, adding a "thank you, Linus, we really appreciate it." The older man seemed to mutter something that Leo couldn't hear before the geologist continued,

"Robin, honey, would you mind going ahead and setting up the spare bed in Sebastian's room. It'd be best Maru sleeps there for the time being. I'll be there with you shortly. Kids, you should go straight to bed- and don't worry about the alarms, you've earned the right to sleep in tomorrow."

Leo knew that Sebastian was just as exhausted as he was because he didn't growl at his stepdad that he wasn't a kid. A glance at the mountain tops also told him that tomorrow had become today, as the black night sky was turning into the dim blue color of dusk.

He could hear the sound of approaching footsteps before Demetrius' voice could be heard once more, this time directed at Leo.

"Everything all right here?" He asked before he seemingly discovered the blood covered disinfectant wipes on the ground next to the doctor.

"Jesus, Leo, didn't you wear gloves?"

He didn't even register the frustration in him before it surfaced in a sarcastic remark, "yeah, you know, when I heard a man had been buried alive under a mountain, my first though was of course _'oh gee whiz, I'd better get my trusty gloves!'_ "

Neither of the other two men answered and soon enough he felt ashamed for lashing out. He sighed and rubbed his heavy eyes with now fully bandaged hands and fingers.

"Sorry. That was stupid. I'm just glad he's okay."

"You and me both, bud." the geologist replied, a small smile tugging at his lips. "You're welcome to stay on our couch if you'd like? You look completely spent."

"Nah," replied Leo, struggling to put his weight back on his feet as he slowly stood up and dusted himself off, "I've got to feed the animals, milk the cows. Thanks though, I appreciate it."

Demetrius' smile broadened slightly, "Sure thing. You take care, Leo."

"Yeah you too."

"Harvey." The family man said as he nodded at the doctor in a form of goodbye before he walked away.

"Thanks for this," Leo gesture at his hands. "Could you send me the bill?"

Harvey nodded and gave a weak smile. "You really should get some sleep, you look pale. And I suggest a big pile of vegetable consumption the next few days- you should still have some left from the fall?"

Leo nodded. "Thanks, doc. I'll see you around." and with that, he turned the other way, picking up his coat from the ground and whistling for his Border Collie who had decided to take a nap while the rest of them were sorting through their problems, and they both began the trek home.

He almost had to drag his feet along the mountain path, his limbs felt so heavy. It was in a daze that he walked to his barn, placed hay in the shelves and milked the cows. He didn't have the energy to chat with his two cows like he usually did, and it was with the same listlessness that he went through the chicken coop. He forgot to check for eggs and almost flung the hay at his four prized chickens.

He vaguely noted that the sky had turned a beautiful light blue color with rays of bright orange peeking out from behind the mountain tops. He didn't bother to pull off his boots when he finally got to his house and his coat was forgotten at the barn or the coop- he didn't care. He fell into his bed, fully clothed, and was fast asleep before his head hit the pillows.

* * *

A/N: I just wanted to say a quick thank you to those of you who have taken the time to favorite and/or review this story, I really appreciate you letting me know you enjoyed it. And because I like to be a tease: next chapter Alex will make a reappearance.


	4. Chapter 4

Again, he awoke to a knock on his door.

His head was buried deep under the covers, and for a while he wasn't sure if the sound had been real or simply an uncomfortable dream. But he wasn't too bothered with finding out which it was. He was perfectly fine with ignoring the possibility of the knocking having been real, perfectly happy with sinking back into the warmth of his covers, into the blissful ignorance of sleep.

The knocking sounded again, echoing through his rather empty cabin. Five knocks this time around and seemingly more impatient. With a great groan, Leo rose from the covers like a mummy in one of those old movies. Bleary eyed, he blinked a few times at his alarm clock which read one-thirty in the afternoon.

Swaying a little, he got to his feet. He was still wearing his clothes from the adventures of the night so he didn't have to worry about his integrity this time when he answered the door.

He opened the door just as the heavy knocking began again and was nearly met with a closed fist in his face, but it stopped just before the impact, poised in mid-knocking motion.

For a moment, Leo found himself staring into eyes as blue and deep as the ocean and found himself rather entranced. He only managed to look away from the gaze as he noticed it narrowing and realized that his guest was scowling at him.

"My grandma sent me over to give you some of her cookies."

Leo looked down at the outstretched basket covered with a red checkered dishtowel and a smile spread over his face, "Wow. Tell her I said thanks, I really appreciate it."

The other man scoffed, surprising Leo to look back into the blue orbs of the sea, puzzled to see them still narrowed, conveying what could only be frustration or annoyance.

"You know, if you'd ask me I'd say you would do better with a strong cup of coffee."

At that, Leo remembered that because he was wearing the same clothes from last night, he probably seemed to be in quite the state. Looking down at himself he noticed his jeans were ripped on his right knee and were positively filthy. Likewise, his shirt was crumpled and worn and underneath it his white shirt was, well, not so white anymore. He realized that all that, coupled with his chronic bedhair and the beginning of a stubble on his chin probably made him look like a bum.

He felt a smirk stretch out on his lips and was about to tell him what had transpired in the night when Alex spoke first,

"Another fun night at the bar?"

Leo's smile fell from his face and for a while he stared at the other man in front of him, waiting for him to apologize for his rude remark but nothing happened. The jock simply stared back at him in open distaste and, despite his exhaustion, Leo felt his back straighten up as he finally fixed the yonger man with a glare of his own.

Willy had asked him to be patient with the jock, but there was only so much he could take before he felt the need to stand up for himself, and Alex had just passed that threshold.

"Thanks for the cookies," Leo began, reaching out for the basket Alex was still holding. "You're grandma's an amazing cook- but obviously you're already aware of that. Must be hard to keep to single portions, am I right?"

He flashed the jock a crooked smile as he patted his own belly as he formulated his next words carefully, "it's no wonder you work out so much, must be hard to keep those extra pounds away. I'm sure you'll get there, though, so keep at it."

He watched triumphantly as Alex's face grew red as he realized what Leo was implying and, fascinatingly enough, his eyes seemed to grow darker with his rage. The jock opened up his mouth and inhaled deeply, obviously preparing for yelling at him, but Leo was quicker,

"Thanks again, bud, I'll see you around."

And he slammed the door in the other man's face. For a while he stood still and listened for retreating footsteps and after a few seconds heard a gutteral growl of frustration on the other side before his guest stomped off his porch and down the pebble road leading to town. Leo couldn't suppress the snicker that bubbled out of him as he heard the jock cursing to himself as he went.

"Cute." he muttered without much thought before taking a bite from one of Evelyn's famous cookies.

It tasted like victory.

* * *

A/N: I'm honestly a bit blown away by the positive feedback I've been getting for this story, short as it is, so I want to give a huge thanks to everyone who's taken their time to read, follow, favorite and review- I appreciate it more than you could know.

I got one question regarding Leo's and Alex's age, so to answer that I've thought of Leo as somewhere around 24 years old and Alex would be somewhere around 20.

Thanks again for reading!


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